Last updated 10/18/2016
We have a community-driven site selection process that is designed to ensure, above all, that any location selected is safe and secure, and has an informed and willing host. Best practice and experience suggest there are a range of approaches a potential host may use to demonstrate its willingness in a compelling manner. These might include documented support expressed through open citizen discussions, a telephone poll, online meetings or surveys, and/or a formal referendum.
New approaches may also emerge over the intervening years as societal expectations and decision-making processes continue to evolve. Communities will be encouraged to identify processes that meet their specific needs and demonstrate clearly to the NWMO whether the project has the support of citizens. As the siting process has evolved, and engagement has broadened to include First Nation, Métis and other communities in the area, the need for partnership to support the implementation of the project is emerging as an important objective. The project will only proceed with the involvement of the interested community, First Nation and Métis communities in the area, and surrounding communities working together to implement it.
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Last updated 1/24/2020
Twenty-two communities initially expressed interest in learning about the project and exploring their suitability as a potential host. Confirming a safe site will take several years of progressively more detailed technical, scientific, social, cultural, and economic studies, as well as engagement of people in the area. The project will only proceed with the involvement of municipal and Indigenous communities in the area, and surrounding communities, working in partnership to implement it.
Last updated 1/13/2022
If South Bruce is selected as the site to safely host Canada’s used nuclear fuel, the Centre of Expertise would be located within the municipal boundaries of South Bruce. It is important for this facility to be near the deep geological repository.
The Centre of Expertise will be a world-class facility for knowledge-sharing across Canada and internationally. It will be home to a technical and social research program and a technology demonstration program, involving scientists and experts from a wide variety of disciplines. This will draw in tourists and visitors from around the world.
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If an informed and willing host is not identified, then used nuclear fuel will continue to be safely stored at the interim storage facilities located at each nuclear reactor site. We would continue to work with Canadians to decide the best way forward for its safe, long-term management.
Adaptive Phased Management (APM) is Canada’s plan for the safe, long-term management of used nuclear fuel. It is both a technical method and a management system, with an emphasis on adaptability. It is designed to meet rigorous safety standards in all aspects of its design and implementation. The end point of the technical method is the centralized containment and isolation of Canada's used nuclear fuel in a deep geological repository in an area with suitable geology and an informed and willing host. APM also involves the development of a transportation system to move the used fuel from the facilities where it is currently stored to the new site. The management system involves realistic, manageable phases, each marked by explicit decision points. It allows for flexibility in the pace and manner of implementation, and fosters the sustained engagement of people and communities throughout its implementation. As part of Canada's plan, we are seeking an informed and willing host for the facility. In addition to extensive technical assessments, the site selection process involves extensive learning and dialogue with communities before a preferred site can be identified. A fundamental tenet of APM is the incorporation of new knowledge. We will adapt plans in response to advances in technical learning, international best practices, ongoing input of the public, insight from Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge, changes in public policy, and evolving societal expectations and values.
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No site has been identified yet. Canada's long-term plan for used nuclear fuel requires that the deep geological repository be located in an area with an informed and willing host at a site that meets rigorous technical and safety criteria.
In 2010, the NWMO began a multi-year site selection process to identify a suitable location for the deep geological repository and Centre of expertise. The process is designed to ensure the site selected is safe and secure, meeting or exceeding all regulatory requirements. Only areas where communities expressed an interest in learning about the project are considered. Over time and through increasingly detailed technical and social studies and engagement, it will become clearer which areas have the strongest potential to safely host the project.
More about Project Facilities, Site Selection
Last updated 6/11/2020
No site has been selected. Over time and through increasingly detailed studies, it will become clearer which areas have potential to safely host the project. Above all, the preferred site will be one that can safely contain and isolate used nuclear fuel, protecting people and the environment over the very long term. There cannot be any credible risk to the public or the environment, including bodies of water. The project will also be subject to a thorough regulatory review process, including an environmental assessment and a licensing review to ensure that it is implemented in a manner that protects people and the environment.
The site must also be located in an area with an informed and willing host – the project will not be imposed on any community. The project will only proceed with the communities that initiated their areas' involvement, First Nation and Métis communities, and surrounding municipalities working together to implement it.
More about Site Selection
Last updated 5/14/2019
We do not have expropriation power.
The site selection is designed to ensure, above all, that the site selected is safe and secure, and has an informed and willing host.
We will continue to demonstrate our values of transparency, accountability and integrity throughout any potential land acquisition process, which will take place through collaborative dialogue with the appropriate parties.
More about Site Selection, Public Engagement, Environment, Safety and Security
Depending on the location of the repository site, used nuclear fuel can be transported by road, rail or water. All three modes provide for safe and secure transportation around the world. It is expected to take several more years to complete the necessary studies to identify a preferred site and an informed and willing host. At this early stage of assessment, we are looking at road and rail access from the interim storage sites to communities that are engaged in the site selection process. The mode of used fuel transport, potential routes, and the safety and social acceptability of the transportation system will be fully addressed through engagement during the siting process and through the environmental assessment and licensing process. Transportation of used nuclear fuel will need to meet stringent safety requirements set out by Transport Canada and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission.
More about Transportation, Project Facilities
Last updated 3/2/2020
Since 2010, we have been engaged in a multi-year, community-driven process to identify a site where Canada’s used nuclear fuel can be safely contained and isolated in a deep geological repository. Potential siting areas are identified and assessed in a series of steps that began when communities formally expressed interest in learning more. The safety and appropriateness of any potential site will be assessed against a number of factors, both technical and social in nature.
The process is community driven. It is designed to ensure, above all, that the site selected is safe and secure, and has an informed and willing host. The process must meet the highest scientific, professional and ethical standards.
The project will only proceed with the involvement of Municipal and Indigenous communities in the area and surrounding communities, working in partnership to implement it.
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